Amazon has just scolded us. It put us in our place and told us to stay there. And because Amazon is bigger than us, we grin and bear it.

Amazon has given us global reach, no doubt about it. We have Kuhaku pages in Japanese, French, German, even Canadian ... But it's also given us our first real dose of the hated "r" word, the ultimate curse word in the publishing industry: returns. The cyberspace bookstore just returned 10 copies of Kuhaku. Ugh, what is with these distributors? Hal the computer has told them, "We need 67 copies of Kuhaku ... definitely not 77."

The more I'm in this industry — here's where I sound like a grizzled veteran, so please don't tell anyone the company's just two-and-a-half years old — the more I'm convinced that the way to survive is to look back at how books were marketed in the 19th century, then add a layer of Internet outreach to the mix. In other words, go the old-fashioned route and visit as many bookstores as you can, talk to as many people, et cetera, but whatever you do, don't get obsessed with Amazon or Barnes & Noble or Borders. They will only break your heart.

But of course, they can still turn on the charm when they want to. The reader reviews are a great touch on Amazon, and we just received another five-star review on our Japanese Amazon page. Plus, shipping is free anywhere in Japan via Amazon, which is, well, really, really nice.

OK, now back to chasing chickens.